Optimal reactive power dispatch based on harmony search algorithm

This paper presents a harmony search algorithm for optimal reactive power dispatch (ORPD) problem. Optimal reactive power dispatch is a mixed integer, nonlinear optimization problem which includes both continuous and discrete control variables. The proposed algorithm is used to find the settings of control variables such as generator voltages, tap positions of tap changing transformers and the amount of reactive compensation devices to optimize a certain object. The objects are power transmission loss, voltage stability and voltage profile which are optimized separately. In the presented method, the inequality constraints are handled by penalty coefficients. The study is implemented on IEEE 30 and 57-bus systems and the results are compared with other evolutionary programs such as simple genetic algorithm (SGA) and particle swarm optimization (PSO) which have been used in the last decade and also other algorithms that have been developed in the recent years. (c) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.